By Steven Enatu
KAPELEBYONG
President Yoweri Kaguat Museveni has donated ten million Uganda shillings to Betty Atia, a 32-year-old mother of five in Ocoro Koboi cell of Kapelebyong Town Council.
President Museveni, on a PDM assessment tour in the Teso sub-region, visited her modest farm of four pigs on Monday 18th November, 2024.
Atia’s PDM success story embodies the promise of the Parish Development Model (PDM), a program championed by the Ugandan government to uplift rural communities.
A few months ago, Betty received UGX 993,000 under the PDM initiative. With careful planning and determination, she purchased five piglets from Soroti, marking the humble beginning of her pig farming venture. Each Piglet cost her 200,000shs.
Despite limited resources, her vision was clear: to create a sustainable livelihood for her family. After four months, she sold one piglet to construct a temporal sty, a step that signified her commitment to growth even in the face of challenges.
However, challenges persisted. The small plot of land she owned limited her expansion plans, and affording quality feeds for her pigs became an uphill battle. Undeterred, Betty kept her faith alive, determined to provide a better future for her children.
During a candid 10-minute interaction, Atia laid bare her dreams and struggles. She passionately explained her desire to expand her farm, fence the land to secure her pigs, and venture into crop production. Her plans included growing sunflowers, a strategy she believed would transform her farm into a sustainable enterprise.
Impressed by her determination and vision, President Museveni donated UGX 10 million to help Atia fence her sty, purchase an additional hectare of land, and kickstart her crop farming ambitions.
The President assured Atia that the next time he returns to Teso, he will require a different and bigger success story. The President ended his day one Tour in Teso with a visit to Katakwi. He will conclude his tour in Kaberamaido with a rally.
